Natural Food Co. to Pay $1.5 Million in Justice Dept. Agreement on Federal Immigration Laws

Following an investigation into potential criminal violations of federal
immigration laws, Mary’s Gone Crackers Inc. will pay $1.5 million and
establish a corporate compliance program but will not be prosecuted, the
U.S. Department of Justice has announced.

The investigation determined that 48 of the company’s employees were
ineligible to work in the United States; Mary’s informed Immigration
and Customs Enforcement that the employees had left the company,
but further investigation found that Mary’s hired at least 13 of those
employees back under different names. In addition to the $1.5-million
payment, Mary’s must establish an anonymous tip line for employees
to report noncompliance issues, provide I-9 training to employees and
report compliance measures to the U.S. Attorney’s Office for two years.

Issue 613